Victor C. Ariole 

Nigeria’s Attorney-General made a seemingly great submission in front of Senators that allowed his confirmation which somehow fails the test of best practice as seen in the process that confirmed Barr the Attorney – General of USA. However given the status of Nigeria nay Africa as a marginal continent in the face of current G 7 gathering where only Burkina Faso and Senegal are invited to transmit the warning signals of the great countries of the West – USA, Italy, United Kingdom, France, Canada, Germany and their adopted ally Japan – it is evident that obedience to what they set as rules helps in not incurring their wrath otherwise their concerted agreement could wipe off the earnings of any non-compliant country. 

Note that at the time BRICS – Brazil (See the Amazon forest in flame), Russia (see another Chernobyl in Russia), India (see Kashmir insurrection)China (see trade war with USA), South Africa(see unabated recession) – decided to enact a challenge they started fumbling in their respective countries. In effect G 7 remotely make the rules that dictate global social contract and basic tenets are provided by them like what it takes to partake in AGOA which Nigeria Rule of Law Matters in $9billion Fine.

has not been able to follow. So, when Nigeria’s attorney general thinks that his appeal for $9billion fine against Nigeria is sustainable he could only be referring to his solo performance that distances create more security threats in Nigeria as he solely rules that security issues, seen from reactive performance is better than rule of law that is proactive engagement.

Nigeria has been fined $9billion dollars for failing to be proactive which is what patriotism requires from the office of the Attorney-General so as to avoid Bakassi repeat.  And, according to the Attorney-General, his office is well equipped to take briefs and fend for the rights of Nigeria on any litigation that goes into saving Nigeria’s external reserve. If reports say that $600million had been set aside to engage in out of court settlement which was not adhered to, where then is the patriotism of the Attorney –General’s staff. Nine billion dollars is capable of sending wrong signals for the entire Nigeria’s engagement with great players in the global field. Nigeria is still using almost ¼ of its budget to service foreign loans which is repatriated to the supposed great countries of the world and they act like pride of lions. And, in the jungle when the lion roars, it sends signals to the weaker animals that for now the pride is in relaxing mode as it has taken enough but in some hours to come raids will resume.

The noise is sufficient to allow them hide but the hiding place is still within the forest in which the lion remains the king and has mastered enough to the point that preys had no hiding place unless they enter the ocean which has its own dangers also. So, when you stray to the glare of a pride of lions, your appeal could be heard only in their stomach.

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Like OBJ once observed, it is futile appealing against the Bakassi rule that ceded it to Cameroun and that the proactive measure would have been never to acquiesce to appearing before the court that was already biased to favour Cameroun seen as a better ally of the great operators. The same goes for the current $9billion fine that must be expunged instead of creating more financial burden that would further deplete Nigeria’s resources as even investors are demanding higher yields for Federal Government bonds as if there is no trust in Nigeria’s government any more.  Some countries bonds are even oversubscribed on near to zero yields as Nigeria’s head to double digit yield. In effect it smacks of damage done by non-compliance of rules freely participated by Nigeria through its legal brains headed by the Attorney – General, whether current or past ones as government remains a continuum.

One is not a lawyer but as someone who observes business attitudes and language patterns that translate to actionable cases, when a court seen as commercial tribunal the way French people treat their tribunals, give order, it is irrevocable like the judgement of the Code of Conduct Tribunal that even the former Chief Justice of the federation could not escape from. Justice Butcher has ordered that Nigeria’s asset could be seized to recoup the judgement debt and it will be done if Nigeria fails to approach P&ID, the complainant.  Now see what has been done to a cargo that has been granted right to sail in the Gibraltar by a court and how it is obeyed as rule of law deems fit and how security implication of that rule was not assumed to be the prime issue like Nigeria says about its own rule of law as espoused by the Attorney – General. Like Soldiers say,” obey before complaint” which is part of martial law and goes with obeying arms engagement law, Rule of Law is human and supersedes rule of force and it is obeyed first before further struggles to negate it.

That is where Nigeria and its legal team headed by the Attorney-General are creating big gap between what obtains in a small fish creating its own law and as it remains in a sea inhabited by sharks or in a jungle controlled by a pride. Yes, assumed lesser Nigerians could suffer to a point that they can run for their dear lives and seek asylum elsewhere but it does not apply when global law catches up with Nigeria as a self-inflicted small fish personae in a global arena it decides to avoid its best practice template.

Nigeria needs a re-think on how to engage the global world otherwise like structural adjustment programme of IBB era ‘the sinking of the ship’ seems on the way and the current economic team must make haste to get the global players to start trusting Nigeria before Nigeria goes the Venezuelan or the Zimbabwean way.  O God of creation … lead our leaders right and the youths the truth to know so as to grow in honesty and avoid being hounded as the children of failed leaders.

Ariole is Professor of French and Francophone Studies, University of Lagos